Run board for freight cars



i 1,628,809 A May 17 1927' F. E. sANDsrRoM RUN BOARD FOR FREIGHT CARS Filed Sept. 18, 1925 Patented May 17, 1927.

FERDINAND E. SANDSTBOI, F ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

BUN BOARD FOR FREIGHT CARS.

Application filed September 18, 1925. Serial No. 57,197.

My invention relates to run boards of the kind used as a bridge between the side doors of freight cars on adjacent tracks during the handling of freight at railways freight terminals and like places. The object of the invent-ion is to provide an improved run board that may be readily and safely secured with its ends upon the floors of two cars regardless of the variation in distance l0 between any two cars, in parallel position,

y for moving freight from one car mto the other. y,

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a vertical cross section of two box cars with my device in operative position be tween the side door openings of the cars.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged top or plan view of the improved run board.

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of i 4 is a detail view of either one of the two gorked pins arranged to hold the board in lace.

eferring to the drawing by reference numerals, 5 designates the foot board, showing in Fig. 1 that when in use its ends are placed upon the thresholds 6 and iioors 7 of two box cars 8 of which 9 are the side door openings.

The board 5 consists of a plank or board about two inches thick, three and one-half feet wide and about tive feet long, made of vone or more pieces of lumber. The board has its ends 10 beveled at the upper side and reinforced by sheet metal 11 secured at 12.

Near each end the board is provided with a longitudinal central slot 13 in which is insorted from below a metal rack 14 having end flanges 15 secured by screws 16. Said flanges may be cast with the rack or they may be a fiat wrought iron bar secured to th rack and to the board. Y

Each rack is formed with a series of lateral notches 17 and topl notches 18 extending between each pair of opposite notches 17 thus forming a series of inverted U- shaped notches across the rack.

19 is a U-shaped staple like pin adapted to be dropped into any one of the notches 17- 18. said staple being attached to the board by any suitable iexible element such as a light cable or chain 20 which is placed out ot the way under the board. In operation when any person using the board desires to move the pins in either direction in the racks so as to bringr them close to the door sills and prevent sliding of the board, he simply picks up the pin and moves it to the desired notch, letting the cord or chain 20 move in the slot alongside of the rack. For said reason the rack can be seen in Fig. 2 to lie close to one side of the slot while at the other side the slot 13 forms a clearance for the chain when raised with the extracted in.

Having thus describedj my invention, what I claim is:

1. A run board of the class described having a longitudinal slot. a metal bar narrower than the slot secured in the said slot and having a series of inverted U-shaped notches across its to and sides, and a staple shaped pin adapte( to straddle the bar and be dropped into either one of said notches and engage with both of its legs simultaneously the outer edge ot the sill of a side door of a railwa car.

2. T e structure specified in claim 1, and a flexible element secured to the pin and to the board, said flexible element being attached to the lower end of the pin and Inovable in the slot along one side of the rack when the pin is raised.

In testimony whereof lI aitx my si mature.

FERDINAND E. SANDST OM. 

